Window Grilles Provide Homes Unique, Historic Touches

April 24, 2018

Spring is here, with the promise of nicer temperatures on shiny and sun-filled days. It’s a smart time to think about grilles. Not the grills that cook tasty summer meals, but the grilles that can refresh the look of your home’s windows.

Window grilles are stylish horizontal and/or vertical bars that split larger panes of glass into patterns. They are usually used as a design throwback to when window glass could not be produced in the large sheets available today.

Back then, glass was weaker and large pieces were almost impossible to intall without breaking. The answer was to create multiple small pieces of glass connected together by window grilles.

Even though modern technology has made it possible to make windows without needing grilles, the look of windows with grilles has maintained popularity with owners who want a traditional or historic look for their home.

Look at any Victorian, Cape Cod or Colonial style house, for example, to see popular home architectures that might not look “right” without windows that have grilles.

History and technology meet midway when it comes to modern window grilles. You can discover a variety of choices in replacement windows for grilles that not only maintain a sense of historic style, while featuring today’s conveniences.

From grilles that make the image of individual window panes to grilles that can be moved in order to make cleaning and maintaining window glass easier, there are window grille options that meet almost any homeowner’s plans.

Here are some available grille types offered by Pella of Greensboro, as well as features that come with each:

Integral Light Technology (ILT) Grilles

These grilles are for those who seek a window grille that gives a realistic look of individual windowpanes without the price of customizing a window. Depending on the type of window, either wood, fiberglass or vinyl grilles are permanently placed to the inside and outside of the window glass.

Some windows include a nonglare foam spacer that then is installed between the grilles to create a shadow that gives the image of individual glass panes — presenting an authentic look of true divided-light windows.

ILT grilles are a great option for homeowners looking for windows that are an authentic complementary match for their traditional or historic design. These grilles can be made in unfinished or prefinished stained wood, or painted and primed fiberglass or vinyl.

Simulated Divided-Light Grilles (SDL)

SDL grilles offer the same approach as ILT grilles, with grilles adhered to the inside and outside of the glass. Unlike ILT grilles, SDL grilles typically do not include a spacer between the grille and the glass.

Removable Roomside Wood Grilles

Different than other divided-light grilles, removable grilles are attached to the interior side of windows with latches. This allows the grilles to be taken out and makes cleaning the glass easier, while still giving the look of divided windowpanes in the window. Like divided-light grilles that are adhered to the window, though, removable grilles can be made in unfinished wood, prefinished stained wood or painted and primed.

Between-The-Glass Grilles

As opposed to divided-light grilles that are typically attached on both sides of the glass or removable grilles that are connected to the roomside of the glass, between-the-glass grilles are, as the name intimates, installed between the panes of insulating glass in double- or triple-paned windows.

The benefit of these grilles is that homeowners get the design of divided windowpanes while still having a smooth glass surface that’s convenient to clean.

Between-the-glass grilles can be made to be removable. In windows featuring this style of grille, the space between the panes of glass, sometimes referred to as a swinging panel, can be opened in order to remove the grille for cleaning, or when cleaning the panes of glass.

With these grille choices, creating a historic look doesn’t mean having to deal with historical window technology. When planning to replace your home windows, look into the wide array of grilles that are available to make the perfect combination of traditional and modern window design.